If you do n't get the job done at work , you wo n't get paid .

But Congress plays by its own rules . Specifically , Congress has n't passed a budget in almost four years . This is basic -- and required by law . Congress seems to think it 's bigger than the law , however , which might help explain one recent poll that found it less popular than root canals , cockroaches and Donald Trump .

That 's why an act passed in the House on Wednesday deserves widespread support , as well as Senate passage . It 's called `` No Budget , No Pay , '' and it means what it says .

If members of Congress ca n't pass a budget on time , they would n't get paid until they did . Sadly , this low bar seems high . In fact , according to the Washington Post , Congress has passed spending bills on time only four times in the past 30 years .

This is your money . And our elected representatives seem to have forgotten that presenting a stable plan on how to spend the money is a basic part of their job description . Instead , Washington has gotten used to living from continuing resolution to continuing resolution . This ai n't the way it 's supposed to be . In fact , it is a violation of the 1974 Budget Control Act -LRB- PDF -RRB- .

But somehow , breaking the laws they set for themselves does n't seem to be an urgent concern to these Congresscrats , despite the fact that the U.S. government spent $ 3.7 trillion last year -LRB- PDF -RRB- .

The absence of a budget does n't just violate common sense ; there are real dollars and cents costs . Without a budget , it becomes difficult for government to make long-term spending decisions that affect us all .

Now , House Republicans have seized on this idea as part of their bid to extend the debt ceiling deadline until mid-May . To be clear , this is just kicking the can , but it 's still a responsible step in the right direction .

`` No Budget , No Pay '' was originally proposed by No Labels , a group of Democrats , Republicans and independents dedicated to the politics of problem-solving . I helped found the citizens ' group in 2010 with Mark McKinnon , Nancy Jacobson , Bill Galston , Lisa Borders , Kiki McLean , David Walker and many others . The proposal was the cornerstone of the `` Make Congress Work '' plan released last year .

The idea was quickly adopted by Republican Dean Heller in the Senate and Democrat Jim Cooper in the House . But it met stiff resistance from other members of Congress who did n't like the idea of personal accountability for institutional dysfunction .

Now , suddenly , after the election results of 2012 , there is renewed interest in the idea , largely because it resonates with constituents as such a common sense proposal . `` No Budget , No Pay '' is a no-brainer .

The proposal is getting support from more than the GOP House leadership . A large number of centrist `` Blue Dog Democrats '' have announced their intention to vote for the measure , and the White House released a statement saying it would not try to oppose the measure because it would at least provide a `` short term solution to the debt limit . ''

According to the bill , if lawmakers did n't pass a budget by April 15 , their pay would be docked and put in an escrow account until they found a way to work together on this front . Not incidentally , that 's also the reason `` No Budget , No Pay '' does not violate the 27th Amendment , which forbids salary increases or reductions during a current Congress : Their salary is not being reduced , it is being withheld until they actually do their job .

Time and time again in this divided , dysfunctional Congress , we have seen partisan gridlock fall away only when members ' self-interest is at stake . That 's why we see the flurry of activity at the end of the year , when members of Congress want to get home for the holidays . Docking their pay would get their attention and focus their mind .

Let me be clear : A long-term solution to the debt ceiling debacles still needs to be found . Congress is now the greatest single impediment to American economic recovery , in large part because a bloc of 50 or so votes on the far right seems enamored with playing chicken with our country 's full faith and credit .

The last time we went through this idiotic ideological exercise , America got its AAA credit rating downgraded . Standard and Poors stated the reason clearly : `` The effectiveness , stability , and predictability of American policymaking and political institutions have weakened at a time of ongoing fiscal and economic challenges . ''

But the House GOP vote to at least extend the debt-ceiling deadline and impose a common sense measure like `` No Budget , No Pay '' is sign of sanity at the start of the second Obama term . It will not solve all our problems , but at least by imposing a degree of personal accountability on members of Congress , it might encourage constructive cooperation instead of last-minute scrambles and hyperpartisan brinksmanship .

If patriotic conscience ca n't compel Congress to work together , maybe requiring them to have some personal skin in the game will inspire them to do their job .

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John Avlon : Most people who fail to do their jobs do n't get paid

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Avlon : Congress has n't passed a budget in nearly four years

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Congress has passed a budget on time only four times in 30 years , he writes

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Avlon : House GOP backs bill that would dock lawmakers ' pay till budget is passed